Pellet magazine



E. R. TAGGART ETAL PELLET MAGAZINE Filed Jan. 20, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1/N VEN 7' UPS. Vl-'A7577 P47 'GGAP' W4! TER T PJLMEP WWXW T'PNEK March20, 1962 E. R. TAGGART ETAL 3,025,953

PELLET MAGAZINE Filed Jan. 20, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 /N VEN TOMS.EVERL-'r RAV 7466/197' WAL TEA 7. PAL MEA avm XW 4 TANEX 3,025,953PELLET MAGAZINE Everett Ray Taggart and Walter T. Palmer, Des Moines,Iowa, assignors, by mesne assignments, to Diamond Laboratories, DesMoines, Iowa, a limited partnership Filed Jan. 20, 1958, Ser. No.789,965 7 Claims. (Cl. 2636-42) Our invention relates to pelletinjectors and more particularly to injectors designed for subcutaneousinjection of chemical or biological substances in pellet form in animalsor poultry.

One of the important objects contemplated by this invention is theprovision of an improved pellet magazine or cartridge clip assembly forpackaging a selected varying number of pellets and for successivelyfeeding such pellets into position for ejection irrespective of theposition in which the device is held.

Another object is to provide an improved pellet injector of the aboveclass which includes window means associated with the cartridge clip andejection apparatus whereby the actual presence of a pellet in theejection chamber can be visibly determined. This feature affordspositive assurance that a pellet is actually being injected andeliminates the possibility that the device is operating on an emptyloading chamber due to a failure in the feeding device, or exhaustion ofthe pellet supply which cannot be readily determined in completelyclosed injecting devices.

Further objects inhering herein are to provide an improved pelletinjector that is convenient to handle and use, durable in constructionand extremely e'icient for its intended purpose.

Other objects and advantages of this invention reside in the details ofconstruction and correlation of the various parts and will be apparentas the description proceeds.

This invention consists of novel parts and combination of parts to behereinafter described whereby the objects set forth are attained, aspointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings,in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a preferred embodiment of thisinvention,

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on the line 22 of FIG. l,

FIG. 3 is an enlarged front elevational View of the cartridge clip inthe holder therefor with the holder partly in section to more clearlyillustrate the construction thereof,

FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of a loaded pellet magazine orcartridge clip prior to insertion in the injector device, and

FIGS. 5 and 6 are respective enlarged exploded perspective views of thecartridge clip showing the same adapted for packaging different numbersof pellets.

Referring to the drawings an elongated cylindrical hollow barrel ismounted at its forward end 12 to an annular shoulder 14 integral withthe inner end 16 of an elongated transparent pellet magazine or clipholder 18 so that holder 18 is disposed perpendicularly to thelongitudinal axis of barrel 10 as shown in FIG. l. Oppositely disposedon end 16 of holder 18 relative to the shoulder 14 is a projectingexternally threaded vboss 28 and thus arranged, shoulder 14, inner end16 of the holder 18 and the boss 20 are in longitudinal alignment witheach other and in axial alignment with barrel 10. An opening orpassageway 22 extends through parts 14, 16 and 20 parallel to thelongitudinal axis of barrel 10 and that part of passageway 22 throughthe inner end 16 of holder 1S serves as a pellet loading chamber 24 aswill later appear. A hypodermic type needle 26 is removably mounted inthe opening 22 through boss 20 by a suitable se 3,825,953 Patented Mar.20, 1952 nut 28 and lock ring 30 in a well known manner so as toregister with chamber 24.

Within barrel 10 and slidable longitudinally therein is a plunger rodassembly designated generally by the numeral 32 (FIG. 2). This includesa block member 34 which carries a plunger rod 36 projecting therefrom inaxial alignment with barrel 10 and toward the forward end 12 of thebarrel. Rod 36 is positioned to register with passageway 22 so as tomove therein and through needle 26 to approximately the point end 38thereof. Mounted also in block 34 so as to extend oppositely to rod 36and toward the rear end 40 of barrel 10 is a rod 42 which carries anenlarged head or cap 44 attached to a compression spring 46. Therearward end 48 of spring 46 abuts a cap or plug 58 serving as a closurefor the rearward end 40 of barrel 10 which is removably held in place bya screw 52. A leaf spring member 54 attached at one end to block 34 by ascrew 56 (PIG. 2) is provided with an upturned shoulder 58 on itsrearward end relative to the rear of barrel 10. A control buttonconsisting of a knob portion 60 with integral stem 62 has the stem 62threadably engaged with spring 54 so that knob 60 is disposed on theouter surface of barrel 1) and stem 62 is movable longitudinally of thebarrel 10 in an elongated slot 64 formed in the barrel wall andextending longitudinally on the forward portion thereof. At the rearwardend of slot 64 a catch or hook 66 extends slightly into the interior ofthe barrel 10i. Plunger assembly 32 is manually operated lby an operatorplacing a finger on knob 60 and moving it rearwardly until shoulder 58of spring 54 engages catch 66 as shown in FIG. 2. In this position thecompression spring 46 is compressed and the assembly is cocked ready foruse. A slight pressure on knob 60 will depress spring 54 sufficiently todisengage shoulder 58 from catch 66 and assembly 32 can either bepermitted to forcibly move forward under expansion of spring 46 or bymaintaining linger tip control of knob 62 it can be eased forwardly, ifdesired.

The pellet clip holder 18 is provided on its forward side (FIG. 3) witha longitudinal slo-t 68 that communicates at the inner end portion 16with chamber 24 in passageway 22 and extends through the outer end 70thereof. Slot 68 as formed divides the forward side of holder 18 intothe spaced Segments or walls 72 and 74. A plate or guard 76 is securedto wall 72 by screws 78 so as to extend across a portion of slot 68intermediate the ends thereof and engage wall 74 as shown in FIG. 3.Wall 74 is provided with a longitudinal hole 88 communicating with end70' and terminating approximately mid-way toward holder end 16. A coilspring 81 is disposed in hole 88 being secured at the bottom thereof bya screw 82 and at the other end projects beyond holder end 70 where itis attached to the short end of an L shaped follower member 84 adaptedfor use with the pellet magazine or clip indicated generally by thenumeral 86 (FIGS. 4, 5 and 6) which will now be described.

The magazine 86 is basically an elongated box-like hollow body that isrectangular in cross section `and is adapted to hold `a supply ofpreferably cylindrical shaped pellets 88 which are fed into the loadingchamber 24 when the magazine is positioned in slot 68 of holder 18 aswill later appear. These magazines 86 are pre-packaged ready for use andare of a novel construction to permit of efficient packaging and ofpackaging of diierent numbers of pellets for commerical uses. Theycomprise an elongated body member 90 which is C shaped or of channelformation in cross section so `as to provide the longitudinal pelletchamber 92 (FIGS. 5 and 6) which communicates with the respective topand bottom ends thereof, 94' and 96 and which is recessed between theoppositely disposed shoulders 98 and 100. A supply of 3 preferablycylindrical shaped pellets are placed in the lower end of chamber 92 asshown and an elongated flat stop 102 is slid into chamber 92 from thetop to abut the uppermost pelle-t and thus keep them from moving out ofplace. Stop 102 which is preferably made of plastic is provided with atransverse groove or scored as at 164 intermediate its ends so that itcan be easily broken in two at such point to leave only the shorterupper part as shown in FIG. 6. In this way, the entire length of stop102 is used when a small supply of pellets 88 are packaged as shown inFIG. 5 and the lower portion is broken olf when a larger supply is usedas shown in FIG. 6. As a practical matter we use ten pellets for thesmall supply and twenty-four for the large supply but it will beunderstood that this is merely a matter of choice and can be varied. Theupper end of stop 102 projects beyond the upper end 94 of the magazineS6 where it can Y be manually grasped for removal. With the pelletspacked as described, a flat elongated cover plate 106 is slid into placeon shoulders and 19d and provides a closure over the pellets and chamber92. A capy 103 is slipped over the bottom end 96 of the magazine 86 tokeep the pellets from falling out and thus arranged, the magazine isloaded as shown in FIG. 4 and ready for use in our injector when needed.

To lad this injector, the magazine 36 is inverted so that end 96 is upand cap 10S is removed. Holder 1S is positioned with end 70 down and themagazine is then slid into slo-t 68, being held therein by guard 76.Gnce the magazine is thus installed, the holder 18 is righted, stop 192manually removed, and the long arm of follower 84 is placed in chamber92 in place of stop 102. Thus loaded, the lowerrnost pellet 38 willenter chamber 24 ready for ejection and follower 84 will urge successivepellets into such chamber as pellets are ejected, iri respective of theposition in which the injector is held. in loading magazine 86 asdescribed, it is immaterial 'whether cover 105 is placed adjacent holderwalls 72 or 774 andwhichever way it is inserted, one of the oppositelyprojecting finger grip anges 110 at the top end 94 will project beyondthe holder 18 (FIG. l) where it can be grasped for Withdrawal.

As mentioned above, holder 18 is transparent and while we havepreferably made it entirely so, it is sufiicient if only the inner end16 is of transparent material so as to provide a window making chamber24 visible 'at all times. By' providing such a window means, it is'possible to see the pellet 88 in the loading chamber 24 ready forejectionthrough needle 26 by the plunger rod 36. As the rod 36 movesthrough chamber 24, it forces the pellet therein into the needle and thelength of rod 36A is sufficient to push the pellet out of the needlewhen it is subcutaneously injected. When rod 36 is Withdrawn byre-coclting assembly 32 as described, follower S4 will move the columnof pellets until one is seated in chamber V24. The spring action offollower 84 assures the reloading of chamber 24 irrespective of theangular position of the magazine and holder and does not depend ongravity as `is true of many similar devices. The rearward end portion ofbarrel 1G which serves as a handle for grasping the injector may beknurled 112 for obvious reasons.

=l-t is submitted that the invention shown and described is aptly suitedto achieve the purposes intended and is characterized by a combinationof highly useful and mutually cooperating elements that combine theirrespective and proportionate functions in accomplishing the objectssought to be obtained.

It will be understood that the phraseology employed herein is for thepurpose of description and not for limitation and that modifications andchanges in the construction and arrangement of this invention can bemade within the scope of what is claimed, Without departing from thespirit and purpose thereof. It is thus intended to .cover by the claims,any modified forms of structure or 4e' mechanical equivalents which maybe reasonably included within their scope.

We claim: l. A pellet magazine for use with a pel-let injector,

,comprising an elongated body member channel shaped `in cross section todene a chamber, oppositely disposed inwardly extending shoulders on therespective channel sides and co-extensive in length therewith, a covermember removably seated on said sho-ulders for enclosing said chamber, aremovable cap on one end of said body member to limit the movement ofpellets in one direction and to secure said cover member to said bodymember until said body member is placed in operation, a stop memberlongitudinally movable in said channel at the other end of said bodymember to limit the movement of pellets in the opposite direction, andsaid stop member projecting from said body member for grasping inremoving the same at times.

2. A pellet magazine for use with a pellet injector, comprisinganelongated body member having a longitudinal channel co-eX-tensive withits length to define a charnber, a removable cover for enclosing saidchamber, a removable cap on one end of said body member to limit themovement of pellets in one direction and to secure said cover until saidbody member is placed in operation, an elongated stop memberlongitudinally movable in said chamber at the other end of said bodymember to limit the movement of pellets in the opposite direction, saidstop member projecting from said body member for grasping in removingthe same at times, said stop member being scored transversely of itslongitudinal axis intermediate its ends whereby it can be severed andused as defined with a shortened length, said severance providing apredetermined variance in the length of said stop member and acorresponding variance in the area of said chamber occupied thereby sothat a variance in the number of pellets to be placed in said channelcan be accomplished.

3. A pellet magazine for use with a pellet injector, comprising anelongated body member having a longitudinal channel co-extensive withits length to define a chamber, `a removable cover for enclosing saidchamber, a removable cap on one end of said body member to limit themovement of pellets in one direction and to secure said cover until saidbody member is placed in operation, a stop member longitudinally movablein said chamber, said stop member being adjustable as to length andremovably disposed in said chamber at the other end of said body memberto limit the movement of pellets in the opposite direction.

4. A pellet magazine for use with a pellet injector, comprising anelongated body member having a longitudinal channel co-extensive withits length, a removable cap on one end of said body member to limit themovement of pellets in one direction until the magazine is placed inoperation, lengthwise adjustable stop means removably disposed in saidchannel at the other end of said body member to limit the movement ofpellets in the opposite direction, said stop means being complementaryin cross section to said channel, and a cover member on said body memberfor enclosing said channel.

5. A pellet supply clip, comprising an elongated body member channelshaped in cross section to dene a longitudinal chamber co-extensive withits length, a removable cover intermediate and engaging the sides ofsaid channel for enclosing said chamber, a removable cap enclosing oneend of said chamber and one end of said cover, an elongated removablerigid stop complementary in cross section to and longitudinally movablein the other end of said chamber to enclose the same, and said stopbeing transversely scored to be easily severable and thereby adjustableto a predetermined shortened length to provide a selective variance inthe area of said chamber which it will occupy.

6. In a pellet magazine construction, an elongated box-like holderprovided with a transverse passageway at one end and a longitudinal slotperpendicular to and in communication with said passageway, a guardacross said slot, an elongated body member defining a charnber open oneach end and on one longitudinal side, a removable cover on said openside, said body member removably disposed in said holder so that one endof said chamber is in communication with said passageway, said coverbeing secured against movement relative to said body member by saidguard, a movable stop in the other end of said chamber, and a springloaded follower on said holder engageable with said stop.

7. In a pellet magazine construction, an elongated box-like holderprovided with a transverse passageway at one end and a longitudinal slotperpendicular to and in communication with said passageway, a guardacross said slot, an elongated body member defining a chamber open oneach end and on one longitudinal side, a removable cover on said openside, said body member removably disposed in said holder so that one endof said chamber is in communication with said passageway, Said coverbeing secured against movement relative to said body member by saidguard, an elongated stop longitudinally movable in the other end of said6 chamber, said stop being scored transversely of its longitudinal axisintermediate its ends whereby it can be easily severed to provide apredetermined shortened length thereof and a corresponding variance inthe area of said chamber occupied thereby, `and a spring loaded followeron said holder engageable with said stop.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,262,732 Andrews Apr. 16, 1918 1,347,622 Deininger July 27, 19201,486,445 Mayol Mar. 11, 1924 1,933,596 MacLean Nov. 7, 1933 1,958,524Tooker May 15, 1934 2,366,053 Putter Dec. 26, 1944 2,530,127 Kltbck Nov.14, 1950 2,620,796 Eriksen et al Dee. 9, 1952 2,632,444 Kas Mar. 24,1953 2,659,369 Lipman Nov. 17, 1953 2,761,446 Reed Sept. 4, 19'56FORETGN PATENTS 521,971 Great Britain June 5, 1940

